Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
@belfercenter.bsky.social
The Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs is the hub of Harvard Kennedy School's research, teaching, and training in international security and diplomacy, environmental and resource issues, and science and technology policy.
belfercenter.org
belfercenter.org
⌛One week left to apply! If you’re looking to deepen your expertise, expand your professional community, and contribute to policy-relevant research, now is the time to submit your application for a Belfer Center Fellowship — the deadline is December 1.
Learn more: www.belfercenter.org/fellowships
Learn more: www.belfercenter.org/fellowships
November 24, 2025 at 9:46 PM
⌛One week left to apply! If you’re looking to deepen your expertise, expand your professional community, and contribute to policy-relevant research, now is the time to submit your application for a Belfer Center Fellowship — the deadline is December 1.
Learn more: www.belfercenter.org/fellowships
Learn more: www.belfercenter.org/fellowships
Reposted by Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Our middle powers project at the @belfercenter.bsky.social has now published its first reports, including mine on Turkish foreign policy 👇
🚨 Now Published: Middle Power Case Studies
Amidst great-power rivalry between the U.S. and China, a growing group of “Middle Power” countries are rising in prominence and potential, challenging the international order.
Through the Belfer Center's Middle Powers project, we interrogate this trend.
Amidst great-power rivalry between the U.S. and China, a growing group of “Middle Power” countries are rising in prominence and potential, challenging the international order.
Through the Belfer Center's Middle Powers project, we interrogate this trend.
Middle Powers: An Intellectual Framework
Belfer Center Director Meghan L. O'Sullivan, Rana Mitter and Moeed Yusuf - together leading the Middle Powers Project - outline its scope and ambition.
www.belfercenter.org
November 21, 2025 at 4:20 PM
Our middle powers project at the @belfercenter.bsky.social has now published its first reports, including mine on Turkish foreign policy 👇
“China is a status quo power concerned with regime stability,” three East Asia scholars write in a provocative new piece for @intsecurity.bsky.social, “and it remains more inwardly focused than externally oriented.”
@polgreen.bsky.social writes for the @nytimes.com.
@polgreen.bsky.social writes for the @nytimes.com.
The Thucydides Trap Is Coming for America www.nytimes.com/2025/11/21/o.... @mitpress.bsky.social @drjlhazelton.bsky.social
Opinion | The Thucydides Trap Is Coming for America
www.nytimes.com
November 21, 2025 at 3:02 PM
“China is a status quo power concerned with regime stability,” three East Asia scholars write in a provocative new piece for @intsecurity.bsky.social, “and it remains more inwardly focused than externally oriented.”
@polgreen.bsky.social writes for the @nytimes.com.
@polgreen.bsky.social writes for the @nytimes.com.
🚨 Now Published: Middle Power Case Studies
Amidst great-power rivalry between the U.S. and China, a growing group of “Middle Power” countries are rising in prominence and potential, challenging the international order.
Through the Belfer Center's Middle Powers project, we interrogate this trend.
Amidst great-power rivalry between the U.S. and China, a growing group of “Middle Power” countries are rising in prominence and potential, challenging the international order.
Through the Belfer Center's Middle Powers project, we interrogate this trend.
Middle Powers: An Intellectual Framework
Belfer Center Director Meghan L. O'Sullivan, Rana Mitter and Moeed Yusuf - together leading the Middle Powers Project - outline its scope and ambition.
www.belfercenter.org
November 21, 2025 at 3:00 PM
🚨 Now Published: Middle Power Case Studies
Amidst great-power rivalry between the U.S. and China, a growing group of “Middle Power” countries are rising in prominence and potential, challenging the international order.
Through the Belfer Center's Middle Powers project, we interrogate this trend.
Amidst great-power rivalry between the U.S. and China, a growing group of “Middle Power” countries are rising in prominence and potential, challenging the international order.
Through the Belfer Center's Middle Powers project, we interrogate this trend.
Reposted by Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
In the final episode of season 9 of the We Society podcast🎙️Will Hutton is joined by Prof Rana Mitter, @belfercenter.bsky.social @harvardkennedy.bsky.social, to discuss modern China and its global role, including the future of US-China relations. Listen now 👂➡️ podfollow.com/the-we-socie...
November 19, 2025 at 12:22 PM
In the final episode of season 9 of the We Society podcast🎙️Will Hutton is joined by Prof Rana Mitter, @belfercenter.bsky.social @harvardkennedy.bsky.social, to discuss modern China and its global role, including the future of US-China relations. Listen now 👂➡️ podfollow.com/the-we-socie...
🖋️Critical Mineral resource management, supply chain dynamics and international policy development are some of the most strategic geopolitical issues of our time. From powering clean-energy transitions to advanced tech, these are the raw materials that modern economies—and national security—rely on.
November 13, 2025 at 8:22 PM
🖋️Critical Mineral resource management, supply chain dynamics and international policy development are some of the most strategic geopolitical issues of our time. From powering clean-energy transitions to advanced tech, these are the raw materials that modern economies—and national security—rely on.
Excited that my article, "To Agree or Not to Agree: Hawks, Doves, and Regime Type in International Rivalry and Rapprochement," is now out at International Security.
@intsecurity.bsky.social @mitpress.bsky.social @belfercenter.bsky.social.
direct.mit.edu/isec/article...
@intsecurity.bsky.social @mitpress.bsky.social @belfercenter.bsky.social.
direct.mit.edu/isec/article...
To Agree or Not to Agree: Hawks, Doves, and Regime Type in International Rivalry and Rapprochement
Abstract. Existing scholarship emphasizes hawks’ advantages in making peace, but it is squarely focused on electorally accountable leaders, even though most international rivalries feature at least on...
direct.mit.edu
October 28, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Reposted by Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
1) ***Announcement***
The new Fall 2025 issue is online!
Read articles by Marc Trachtenberg, @aaronbateman.bsky.social, @ajmount.bsky.social, Dong Jung Kim, and @mikegoldfien.bsky.social
direct.mit.edu/isec/issue
@mitpress.bsky.social @belfercenter.bsky.social
The new Fall 2025 issue is online!
Read articles by Marc Trachtenberg, @aaronbateman.bsky.social, @ajmount.bsky.social, Dong Jung Kim, and @mikegoldfien.bsky.social
direct.mit.edu/isec/issue
@mitpress.bsky.social @belfercenter.bsky.social
Volume 50 Issue 2 | International Security | MIT Press
direct.mit.edu
October 28, 2025 at 4:32 PM
1) ***Announcement***
The new Fall 2025 issue is online!
Read articles by Marc Trachtenberg, @aaronbateman.bsky.social, @ajmount.bsky.social, Dong Jung Kim, and @mikegoldfien.bsky.social
direct.mit.edu/isec/issue
@mitpress.bsky.social @belfercenter.bsky.social
The new Fall 2025 issue is online!
Read articles by Marc Trachtenberg, @aaronbateman.bsky.social, @ajmount.bsky.social, Dong Jung Kim, and @mikegoldfien.bsky.social
direct.mit.edu/isec/issue
@mitpress.bsky.social @belfercenter.bsky.social
📖 The energy weapon has returned - and it's changing the rules of global power.
In a new Foreign Affairs article, Meghan O'Sullivan, Director of the Belfer Center, and co-author Jason Bordoff argue that the necessary policy responses could provide a powerful boost to the clean energy transition.
In a new Foreign Affairs article, Meghan O'Sullivan, Director of the Belfer Center, and co-author Jason Bordoff argue that the necessary policy responses could provide a powerful boost to the clean energy transition.
October 22, 2025 at 8:41 PM
📖 The energy weapon has returned - and it's changing the rules of global power.
In a new Foreign Affairs article, Meghan O'Sullivan, Director of the Belfer Center, and co-author Jason Bordoff argue that the necessary policy responses could provide a powerful boost to the clean energy transition.
In a new Foreign Affairs article, Meghan O'Sullivan, Director of the Belfer Center, and co-author Jason Bordoff argue that the necessary policy responses could provide a powerful boost to the clean energy transition.
Belfer Center Fellowships are open for application through December 1, 2025.
@mbudjeryn.bsky.social, Senior Researcher at MIT and Associate with the @managingtheatom.bsky.social, reflects on her time at Harvard Kennedy School as "life changing."
@mbudjeryn.bsky.social, Senior Researcher at MIT and Associate with the @managingtheatom.bsky.social, reflects on her time at Harvard Kennedy School as "life changing."
October 21, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Belfer Center Fellowships are open for application through December 1, 2025.
@mbudjeryn.bsky.social, Senior Researcher at MIT and Associate with the @managingtheatom.bsky.social, reflects on her time at Harvard Kennedy School as "life changing."
@mbudjeryn.bsky.social, Senior Researcher at MIT and Associate with the @managingtheatom.bsky.social, reflects on her time at Harvard Kennedy School as "life changing."
Reposted by Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
New podcast from @intsecurity.bsky.social Nick Anderson and Daryl Press argue that the current U.S. approach for operating airpower to defend Taiwan risks catastrophic defeat. Hardened aircraft shelters may offer a way to blunt Chinese attacks. @belfercenter.bsky.social @mitpress.bsky.social
8 – Airpower and the Sino-American Contest for Military Primacy in Asia | The International Security Podcast
Nicholas Anderson and Daryl Press argue that the current U.S. approach for operating airpower to defend Taiwan risks catastrophic defeat. They have created a new, unclassified, and transparent model t...
international-security.simplecast.com
October 17, 2025 at 12:33 PM
New podcast from @intsecurity.bsky.social Nick Anderson and Daryl Press argue that the current U.S. approach for operating airpower to defend Taiwan risks catastrophic defeat. Hardened aircraft shelters may offer a way to blunt Chinese attacks. @belfercenter.bsky.social @mitpress.bsky.social
Reposted by Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Congratulations to former Managing the Atom Stanton Fellow Sébastien Phillippe, winner of a MacArthur Fellowship (the "genius grant")! Amazing work, from disarmament verification to remarkable work assessing past consequences of nuclear testing and potential consequences of nuclear war.
Sébastien Philippe
Exposing past harms and potential risks from building, testing, and storing launch-ready nuclear weapons.
www.macfound.org
October 9, 2025 at 12:17 AM
Congratulations to former Managing the Atom Stanton Fellow Sébastien Phillippe, winner of a MacArthur Fellowship (the "genius grant")! Amazing work, from disarmament verification to remarkable work assessing past consequences of nuclear testing and potential consequences of nuclear war.
🚨Belfer Center Fellowship applications for the 2026-27 academic year are now open!
Supporting academic & professional tracks, our fellowships are open to doctoral candidates, recent Ph.D. recipients, and practitioners from the public and private sectors.
More info: www.belfercenter.org/fellowships
Supporting academic & professional tracks, our fellowships are open to doctoral candidates, recent Ph.D. recipients, and practitioners from the public and private sectors.
More info: www.belfercenter.org/fellowships
October 1, 2025 at 2:29 PM
🚨Belfer Center Fellowship applications for the 2026-27 academic year are now open!
Supporting academic & professional tracks, our fellowships are open to doctoral candidates, recent Ph.D. recipients, and practitioners from the public and private sectors.
More info: www.belfercenter.org/fellowships
Supporting academic & professional tracks, our fellowships are open to doctoral candidates, recent Ph.D. recipients, and practitioners from the public and private sectors.
More info: www.belfercenter.org/fellowships
Reposted by Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
"Just a year and a half ago, #Greenland's foreign policy strategy was basically one big invitation to the #US for cooperation. Then #Trump destroyed the trust and interest from Greenland," says Ulrik Pram Gad, Senior Researcher @diis.dk.
#Arctic @fridtjofnanseninst.bsky.social
#Arctic @fridtjofnanseninst.bsky.social
Denmark, Greenland and Iceland's Reactions To Trump
Oslo (High North News): "Just a year and a half ago, Greenland's foreign policy strategy was basically one big invitation to the US for cooperation. Then Trump destroyed the trust and interest from Gr...
bit.ly
September 29, 2025 at 7:35 AM
"Just a year and a half ago, #Greenland's foreign policy strategy was basically one big invitation to the #US for cooperation. Then #Trump destroyed the trust and interest from Greenland," says Ulrik Pram Gad, Senior Researcher @diis.dk.
#Arctic @fridtjofnanseninst.bsky.social
#Arctic @fridtjofnanseninst.bsky.social
Reposted by Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
🚨 JUST IN: President Donald Trump has an opportunity to avoid the dangers of an unrestrained nuclear arms competition—something he has repeatedly warned about. Will he seize it?
Latest by Matt Bunn (@matthew-bunn.bsky.social) in @thebulletin.org
#nuclearweapons #nukesky #Trump #Putin #China
Latest by Matt Bunn (@matthew-bunn.bsky.social) in @thebulletin.org
#nuclearweapons #nukesky #Trump #Putin #China
Putin just gave Trump the opportunity to maintain nuclear restraint. Will he seize it?
Extending New START will also give time for Trump to work with Russia and China on future arms control accords.
thebulletin.org
September 25, 2025 at 12:25 PM
🚨 JUST IN: President Donald Trump has an opportunity to avoid the dangers of an unrestrained nuclear arms competition—something he has repeatedly warned about. Will he seize it?
Latest by Matt Bunn (@matthew-bunn.bsky.social) in @thebulletin.org
#nuclearweapons #nukesky #Trump #Putin #China
Latest by Matt Bunn (@matthew-bunn.bsky.social) in @thebulletin.org
#nuclearweapons #nukesky #Trump #Putin #China
Reposted by Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Important WaPo story on the challenges of reprocessing, quoting me and others: www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
Trump’s nuclear ‘renaissance’ rests on risky plan for radioactive waste
The administration goes all-in on recycling spent fuel, despite a history of spectacular mishaps, including an unintentional atom bomb.
www.washingtonpost.com
September 23, 2025 at 1:07 AM
Important WaPo story on the challenges of reprocessing, quoting me and others: www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
🛰️What counts as a "novel space activity?" Why do these activities matter for industry and policy? And how does a new Executive Order, released by the White House in August, aim to close these regulatory gaps?
Read a new Belfer Center explainer by space experts: www.belfercenter.org/research-ana...
Read a new Belfer Center explainer by space experts: www.belfercenter.org/research-ana...
Explainer: Novel Space Activities in the Executive Order on Enabling Competition in the Commercial Space Industry
Research and insight to improve policy and governance at local, national, and global levels.
www.belfercenter.org
September 22, 2025 at 7:55 PM
🛰️What counts as a "novel space activity?" Why do these activities matter for industry and policy? And how does a new Executive Order, released by the White House in August, aim to close these regulatory gaps?
Read a new Belfer Center explainer by space experts: www.belfercenter.org/research-ana...
Read a new Belfer Center explainer by space experts: www.belfercenter.org/research-ana...
New: The Task Force on Nuclear Proliferation and U.S. National Security today published its final report urging the U.S. to strengthen its strategy to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and safeguard national security.
Convened by the @carnegieendowment.org, @nti.org and the Belfer Center.
Convened by the @carnegieendowment.org, @nti.org and the Belfer Center.
September 22, 2025 at 1:36 PM
New: The Task Force on Nuclear Proliferation and U.S. National Security today published its final report urging the U.S. to strengthen its strategy to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and safeguard national security.
Convened by the @carnegieendowment.org, @nti.org and the Belfer Center.
Convened by the @carnegieendowment.org, @nti.org and the Belfer Center.
💡New, by Rabia Akhtar, Associate of the Belfer Center's Managing the Atom Project - what does the Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement signed by Saudi Arabia and Pakistan yesterday actually mean for the global nuclear security landscape?
Beyond the Hype: Pakistan-Saudi Defense Pact Is Not a Saudi Nuclear Umbrella
Rabia Akhtar, Associate with Managing the Atom, writes about the Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement signed by Saudi Arabia and Pakistan in Riyadh, September 2025.
www.belfercenter.org
September 18, 2025 at 5:49 PM
💡New, by Rabia Akhtar, Associate of the Belfer Center's Managing the Atom Project - what does the Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement signed by Saudi Arabia and Pakistan yesterday actually mean for the global nuclear security landscape?
The Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard Kennedy School is pleased to announce that Ambassador Ivo Daalder has joined the Center as a Senior Fellow.
September 17, 2025 at 6:22 PM
The Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard Kennedy School is pleased to announce that Ambassador Ivo Daalder has joined the Center as a Senior Fellow.
Reposted by Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Public Health in Peril: Why Recent CDC Resignations Matter to Us All
www.belfercenter.org/research-ana...
www.belfercenter.org/research-ana...
Public Health in Peril: Why Recent CDC Resignations Matter to Us All
Syra Madad writes that the departure of five top officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is a seismic blow to public health credibility, and a rebuke of political interferenc...
www.belfercenter.org
September 9, 2025 at 12:33 AM
Public Health in Peril: Why Recent CDC Resignations Matter to Us All
www.belfercenter.org/research-ana...
www.belfercenter.org/research-ana...
Political anxieties have piled up and put an end to an era of public optimism, writes International Relations Professor @stephenwalt.bsky.social for @foreignpolicy.com.
How Fear Killed Liberalism
Political anxieties have piled up and put an end to an era of public optimism.
foreignpolicy.com
September 2, 2025 at 8:42 PM
Political anxieties have piled up and put an end to an era of public optimism, writes International Relations Professor @stephenwalt.bsky.social for @foreignpolicy.com.
Reposted by Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
The World Bank has ended its ban on funding nuclear energy projects.
Marina Lorenzini of @belfercenter.bsky.social writes on what to expect next. ⬇️
Marina Lorenzini of @belfercenter.bsky.social writes on what to expect next. ⬇️
The World Bank can now fund nuclear energy projects: Here’s what’s next
After ending its ban on funding nuclear energy projects, the World Bank will infuse nuclear expertise into its teams of economists and country experts.
thebulletin.org
August 28, 2025 at 4:55 PM
The World Bank has ended its ban on funding nuclear energy projects.
Marina Lorenzini of @belfercenter.bsky.social writes on what to expect next. ⬇️
Marina Lorenzini of @belfercenter.bsky.social writes on what to expect next. ⬇️
Reposted by Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Read this great new piece on China in International Security! direct.mit.edu/isec/article... @daveckang.bsky.social @belfercenter.bsky.social @mitpress.bsky.social @intsecurity.bsky.social
What Does China Want?
Abstract. The conventional wisdom is that China is a rising hegemon eager to replace the United States, dominate international institutions, and re-create the liberal international order in its own im...
direct.mit.edu
August 23, 2025 at 12:23 PM
Read this great new piece on China in International Security! direct.mit.edu/isec/article... @daveckang.bsky.social @belfercenter.bsky.social @mitpress.bsky.social @intsecurity.bsky.social
🚨 New: Open access for one week only: Social Cohesion and Community Displacement in Armed Conflict, an award-winning article published by the International Security Journal.
August 18, 2025 at 2:30 PM
🚨 New: Open access for one week only: Social Cohesion and Community Displacement in Armed Conflict, an award-winning article published by the International Security Journal.